Video: Man strips naked in protest at Portland TSA search

Portland
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A man was arrested at Portland International Airport after he stripped naked in protest at security search. The incident comes a week after a woman also removed her clothes at Denver International Airport.

According to KPTV, John E. Brennan was arrested shortly after 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Daily Mail reports Brennan, 50, told police he stripped because he felt "harassed" by TSA agents while checking in. He said he was a regular flyer and did not see reason why he should be subjected to TSA harassment each time he flies.

Stunned and embarrassed, passengers at the airport covered children's eyes, some women averted their eyes while others, mostly men, stood looking on and laughing. Some captured footage of the drama.

According to police, Brennan "disrobed completely naked" while going through security screening. He refused to comply when airport "screeners" asked him "numerous times" to put his clothes back on. CNN reports a police report, said: "He said he disrobed as a form of protest against TSA (Transportation Security Administration) screeners he felt were harassing him." The report continued: "Mr. Brennan's actions caused two screening lanes to be closed and while some passengers covered their eyes and their children's eyes and moved away from the screening area, others stepped out of the screening lanes to look, laugh and take photos of Mr. Brennan."

According to KPTV, a witness, Brian Reilly, who snapped Brennan, said: "I heard ‘Stop the line, stop the line,' and I looked up and there was this man completely nude. He got pulled aside for extra security measures. He was clearly protesting it." Reilly said he heard the man say: "Do I have anything illegal? Am I good to go through now?"

Police were called and they arrested the man, charging him with indecent exposure and disorderly conduct. Investigators say neither drugs nor alcohol influenced his behavior.

KPTV reports TSA, in a statement released soon after the incident, said: "TSA partners with the traveling public to screen all passengers safely and efficiently. When a passenger chooses to be purposefully disruptive, we notify law enforcement. "

Brennan, who was scheduled to fly to San Jose, California missed his flight on an Alaska Airlines plane.

Digital Journal reported last week that a similar incident occurred at Denver international Airport: "...a woman caught illegally smoking a cigarette at the departure gate stripped naked in the full view of everyone, as though she thought officials had asked for a strip search."

The woman later blamed her behavior on "exhaustion," and she was not charged.

According to Daily Mail, Portland International Airport (PDX) is Oregon's busiest and deals with more than 14 million passengers every year.